Sunday Driver: The Legend of El Guapo

Its been since 2019 I wrote anything car related and 2017 since writing about the FoST or the Thunderbird. So, an update is in order. The Focus ST and Thunderbird found other homes as well as The Lady of House and I. Unfortunately, The Bird was an old girl and she needed retirement; street-parked city living was not for her. On the other hand, the FoST was in his prime. However for good or for bad, sometimes circumstances evolve and a change happens. It's like the Colts trading Marshall Faulk or the Canadiens trading Patrick Roy (or insert some other sports trade you fancy). This evolution of circumstances necessitated a trade and just like that, the FoST found a home in New Hampshire. So until the spring of 2020, The Lady and I relied on an old friend, Paquito aka a 2004 Honda Civic. His brow wrinkled and weather beaten, joints riddled with arthritis. Yet, like a true professional, he diligently started and ran every time he was asked to. On a day to day basis, he was simply a worker man and The Lady's love and pride. But just as the FoST and The Bird, evolution waits for no one. 180,000 miles of city life and commutes were taking its toll. So, even The Lady was willing to say good bye old friend and thank you. We planned to merge our driving duties into one vehicle that would be good for both of us. Finding synergy in the ethea of driving for the sake of the activity vs. basic utilitarianism, or manuals vs. automatics was going to be challenge, but fun. A starting point was the criteria: 

1. It needed to be a sedan, not a compact or SUV. 
2. It needed to be safe & reliable. 
3. It needed to have an automatic transmission. 
4. It needed to have good power and performance. 
5. It needed to have a price point of less than $10k.
6. It preferably have All Wheel Drive. 

Based on the above criteria, searching and test driving, the choice for us was El Guapo, aka a 2006 Acura RL. Without getting into the granular nuances, vehicle age is a less anxiety provoking factor for us. Just as any machine or tool that is second hand, a very significant factor is who was the previous owner? Did they mind and take care of their tools? A good chef does not buy and use dull knifes. 

 

El Guapo's origin story starts in 1986, the year Acura, the luxury division of Honda, was launched in the United States. As the legend goes, Acura/Honda was not happy with the fact people knew and more identified with their car model names like Integra, Legend and Vigor and not by the manufacturer name, Acura. It's like Pele, Ichiro or Prince. Does anyone really remember or care what their last names were? Well apparently Acura cared. So, they amended their nomenclature to follow their ground-breaking and iconic NSX, or New Sports eXperimental, and applied it to the entire brand in 1996. So, names like Legend, Integra and Vigor became names like RL, RSX, and TL. El Guapo himself was born in Japan in September 2005 as a RL and destined to travel to United States for Acura. When you look at pictures of him or when you look in person at him, examine the black suit, inspect the shoulder lines, look into his eyes, it is easy to say that he is simply handsome. Now in the Acura nomenclature style, RL means Refined Luxury and it "replaced" the Legend name. So, El Guapo came to the U.S. and has been doing his duty under his given pseudonym. However, the RL did not replace anything. The RL is the Japanese Domestic Market, or JDM, Honda Legend. So, El Guapo is a RL. However, he is also a Legend. Therefore, he is a Real Legend. I will use El Guapo, RL and Legend interchangeably just as I find it okay for you to call me Pete or Peter, #facts. 

So we have had El Guapo for a year and about 10,000 miles, and he is just as reliable as his old brother Paquito. El Guapo's generation achieved the best car safety score in Informed for LIFE "2003–2009 Vehicle risk index SCOREs"; he has a automatic transmission with sequential shift paddles on the steering wheel, he has Super-Handling All Wheel Drive (SH-AWD), he has 290-300 horsepower depending on the scale used, handles well in the corners and moves like a locomotive when traveling straight. This Legend was a single owner with less than 100k miles and documented service history for the criteria meeting price of $7.5k. So far, daily ownership has not been a problem. As typical with any older car, eventually more frequent and higher maintenance costs will come, particularly if you have an older luxury vehicle. It's why they are so cheap, particularly the German brands. However, here is where the insistence on the previous owner, the class of vehicle and the specific vehicle itself comes into play and a finer tooth comb needed.

Overall we are pleased, but like everything there are pros and cons particularly with a car of this vintage. It's like an athlete in their 40's: consistent, self-assured, defined, slightly greying, wearing a tuxedo/evening gown when the occasion calls for it and never late for team meetings. However, some of those attributes can have a downside. The technology in this car is all familiar and common place in 2021 base models such as navigation, voice activation, and expanded driver settings, but were luxury items in 2006. This tech does exactly what you want it to do, but it takes you longer to do it. It's like steampunk, but here it is a locomotive powered by microchips. There are faster and more efficient ways of using hands-free devices, accessing menus, or using the navigation. The "flaw" was the voice activation system in that you could interface with many vehicle functions hands free through a set of specific commands but basically spoke to the vehicle like you were using a walkie-talkie or the old Nextel push to talk phones. If you don't understand this, using the feature can be annoying. Those old phones used to be cool, but its actually easier to just talk or just touch what you want on the screen. The tech is all functional, all dependable, aesthetically pleasing, but showing its age, stuck in its ways. Nevertheless, like a person familiar with the phrases "old age and treachery" or "crafty", there are so many little technology nuggets. For example, the rear headrests fold up/down with a flick of a switch to help with reversing or a light that illuminates the door handle.  

  

The Acura RL was considered the flagship sedan for Honda/Acura. However, the 2005-2012 generations (KB1 & KB2 series) did not sell very well. From 2005-2012, it sold on average 5.6k units annually. Whereas in that same period, the Acura TL sold on average 48.4k units annually. When the KB1 generation came out, it was rumored that it may have a V8 engine. It only ever came with a V6. Given the sticker price was $49.5k, Honda/Acura sentenced it to obsolescence because: One, you could buy a cheaper, well equipped Accord or TL depending on your price point. Both the Accord and TL were mid-sized sedans with a V6, and the TL had a SH-AWD option. Two, with no V8 option that would have differentiated the RL from these two cheaper options, you shoot yourself in the foot in terms of exclusivity for your $50k flagship sedan. For all intents and purposes you have created a situation in which you will eventually obtain exclusivity, but not because you are offering something very different, but because no one buys the product. Why didn't we buy a TL? It was a consideration. The comparable TL for size and power to the RL would have been the 4th generation (2009-up). Have you seen a 4th generation TL? Silver beaks do not belong on automobiles. Only bird I care to drive is a Thunderbird.

 

Speaking of driving, the Legend, ST and Thunderbird all are driver oriented cars in my opinion. Aside from the obvious tangible differences such as size and drive-train, the feel of the Legend is like driving a hybrid of other two. The Super-Handling AWD system, suspension and horsepower hides the vehicle weight in the corners. There is minimal under-steer and it encourages you to stay on the rails and move quickly. This was also true for the ST which accomplished it through almost the same means: drive-train technology, suspension and horsepower. However, the ST felt more rigid and performance oriented. Oddly enough these two vehicles have a very similar power to weight ratio. As it relates to the Thunderbird, I have described it as "the very essence of a GT car" and the Legend gives me the same feeling when cruising. In spirit, the Thunderbird and Legend are more the same kind of vehicle: a very comfortable and effortless driver's car. The Legend gives me the experience of what I envisioned what was possible with the Thunderbird, but I do not think it handled as well as the Legend or ST. However, I can say The Lady likes it and is comfortable driving El Guapo, which speaks to the broad driving envelope the car has. On the other hand, I miss driving manual cars. During COVID times, driving on a back road would have been a natural option to pass the time...a perfect Sunday drive if you will. However, frankly driving the Legend has changed my relationship with driving in that I don't do it as much; and after a year I'm still not sure how I feel about that fact. Do I hate it? Do I like it? Do I think its just different? It's evolution but we can either have positive or negative feelings about it.